A human case of Stellantchasmus falcatus infection in Korea

In an attempt to find the worm producing unidentified egg, one minute fluke was collect from a Korean patient after praziquantel administration. The fluke was identified to be Stellantchasmus falcatus by the expulsor. Brackish water fish was suggested to be a probable source of the infection.     

Developmental and Phylogenetic Characteristics of Stellantchasmus falcatus (Trematoda: Heterophyidae) from Thailand

This study aimed to investigate the infection status, worm development, and phylogenetic characteristics of the intestinal trematode, Stellantchasmus falcatus. The metacercariae of S. falcatus were detected only in the half-beak (Dermogenus pusillus) out of the 4 fish species examined. Their prevalence was 90.0%, and the intensity of infection was 919 metacercariae on average. Worms were recovered from 33 (97.1%) of 34 chicks that were experimentally infected with 200 S. falcatus metacercariae each, and the average recovery rate was 43.0%. The body size and inner organs of S. falcatus quickly increased in the experimental chicks over days 1-2 post-infection (PI). In addition, ITS2 sequence data of this parasite were analyzed to examine the phylogenetic relationships with other trematodes using the UPGMA method. The results indicated that the ITS2 sequence data recorded from trematodes in the family Heterophyidae appeared to be monophyletic. This study concluded that D. pusillus serves as a compatible second intermediate host of S. falcatus in Thailand and that S. falcatus can develop rapidly in the experimental chicks. Data collected from this study can help to close the gap in knowledge regarding the epidemiology, biology, and phylogenetic characteristics of S. falcatus in Thailand.     

Molecular markers for identification of Stellantchasmus falcatus and a phylogenic study using the HAT-RAPD method

Stellantchasmus falcatus is a minute intestinal fluke in the family Heterophyidae. Metacercariae, the infective stage, were reported in a marine fish, mullet Liza subviridis, and a fresh water fish, Dermogenus pusillus, in Thailand. Adults were found in chicks, rats, cats, and humans. Morphological studies were done for comparing Stellantchasmus sp. worms found in 2 different fish hosts; their shapes and organ arrangements were very similar except for the prepharynx length. Therefore, the present study aimed to compare their DNA fingerprints using the HAT-RAPD method for both types of Stellantchasmus and several other related species. Ten arbitrarily selected primers (OPA-04, OPA-09, OPN-02, OPN-03, OPN-09, OPN-12, OPP-11, OPR-15, OPX-13, and OPAD-01) were used. It was found that OPA-09, OPN-03, and OPAD-01 were able to generate S. falcatus specific fragments in mullets which consisted of 200, 760, and 280 bp, respectively. In addition, the results of morphologic, DNA fingerprinting, and phylogenetic analyses strongly suggest that the fresh water and marine specimens of Stellantchamus may be different species.     

A human case of gastric infection by Pseudoterranova decipiens larva.

We report a case of gastric pseudoterranoviasis proven by gastrofiberscopy on Dec. 13, 1994. The 34-year-old male patient, residing in Chungju-shi, was admitted to Konkuk University Hospital complaining of prickling epigastric pain. The symptoms suddenly attacked him two days after eating raw marine fish at Chonan-shi. By the gastrofiberscopic examination, a long white-yellowish nematode was found from the fundus region of stomach. The worm was 34.50 x 0.84 mm in size, and was identified as a 3rd stage larva of Pseudoterranova decipiens judging from the position of the intestinal cecum. This is the 12th confirmed case of human pseudoterranoviasis in Korea.     

The histochemistry of Stellantchasmus falcatus Onji and Nishio, 1915 (Trematoda: Heterophyidae) metacercarial cyst in the mullet Mugil cephalus L. and histopathological alterations in the host†

The metacercarial cyst of the heterophyid trematode Stellantchasmus falcatus in the striated muscles of the mullet Mugil cephalus consists of three layers. Histochemical studies have indicated that these layers are chemically distinct. The acellular inner layer is comprised of complex carbohydrate polyanions rich in acidic groups while the medial cellular layer is comprised of a neutral mucopolysaccharide including a moeity of carbohydrate poiyanions. These two layers are believed to be of parasite origin. The outer layer is cellular and is of host origin. It is the most chemically complex and is believed to include one or more of the following: mucopolysaccharides, glycolipids and phospholipids. In addition, the carbohydrate moeity associated with the mucopolysaccharides and/or glycolipids is in the form of sulphated carbohydrate polyanions with undissociated carboxyls as well as acidic groups. The presence of the parasite results in the necrotic degeneration of the host's myofibers situated in the proximity of the parasite. Large fat cells fill the spaces vacated by necrotic muscle cells and many blood cells occur along the periphery of the parasite.     

A case of Strongyloides stercoralis infection.

Strongyloidiasis has been recognized as one of the life-threatening parasitic infections in the immunocompromised patients. We report an intestinal infection case of Strongyloides stercoralis in a 61-year-old man. Rhabditiform larvae were detected in the stool examination and developed to filariform larvae having a notched tail through the Harada-Mori filter paper culture. The patient received five courses of albendazole therapy but not cured of strongyloidiasis.     

A case of Ebola virus infection.

In November 1976 an investigator at the Microbiological Research Establishment accidentally inoculated himself while processing material from patients in Africa who had been suffering from a haemorrhagic fever of unknown cause. He developed an illness closely resembling Marburg disease, and a virus was isolated from his blood that resembled Marburg virus but was distinct serologically. The course of the illness was mild and may have been modified by treatment with human interferon and convalescent serum. Convalescence was protracted; there was evidence of bone-marrow depression and virus was excreted in low titre for some weeks. Recovery was complete. Infection was contained by barrier-nursing techniques using a negative-pressure plastic isolator and infection did not spread to attendant staff or to the community.     

Laboratory-confirmed case of human infection with ratpox (cowpox)

The present work describes a case of human disease resulting from the bite of a white rat and caused by a biological variant of cowpox virus. The isolates obtained from the sick man and the white rats which had been the source of this infection proved to be identical and did not differ from the biological variants of cowpox virus, isolated earlier from white rats and carnivorous animals of the family Felidae. Thus, the possibility of ratpox (cowpox) transmission from sick rodents to man was established.     

The first human case of Trichinella spiralis infection in Korea

Three cases of human infection by Trichinella spiralis were first confirmed by detecting encysted larvae in the biopsied muscle in December 1997, in Korea. The patients were one 35- and two 39-year-old males residing in Kochang-gun, Kyongsangnam-do. They had a common past history of eating raw liver, spleen, blood and muscle of a badger, Meles meles melanogenys, and complained of high fever, facial and periorbital edema, and myalgia. Hematologic and biochemical examinations revealed leukocytosis and eosinophilia, and highly elevated levels of GOT, GPT, LDH and CPK. In the gastrocnemius muscle of a patient, roundly coiled nematode larvae were detected. The larvae measured 0.775-1.050 (av. 0.908) mm in length, and 0.026-0.042 (av. 0.035) mm in maximum width. The specific IgG antibody levels in three patients' sera were significantly higher when compared with those of normal controls. The patients were treated with flubendazole and albendazole for 15-30 days, and discharged at 13-34 days post-admission. From the above findings, it was confirmed that T. spiralis is present in Korea, and the badger plays a role of as the natural host.     

A case of human vibriosis.

Hyperbaric oxygen therapy offers definitive treatment for decompression sickness, air embolism and carbon monoxide intoxication. It appears to be a very useful adjunct in the management of gas gangrene and may be of value in certain infections that have defied conventional therapy. Intermittent OHP seems to help maintain the viability of ischemic tissues where oxygen requirements are low and where the potential for circulatory restoration is present. Extended utilization in association with radiotherapy and cardiac surgery requires more specialized facilities or still awaits a sounder foundation based on experimentation and controlled clinical studies.     

A human case of Plagiorchis vespertilionis (Digenea: Plagiorchiidae) infection in the Republic of Korea

Plagiorchis vespertilionis (Digenea: Plagiorchiidae) is generally considered a bat parasite, but here it is reported for the first time in a human. The patient was a 34-yr-old male who lived in a coastal village of Haenam-gun (county), Jeollanam-do (province), Republic of Korea. Only 1 worm, 2.6 mm long and 0.7 mm wide, was recovered after praziquantel treatment and purging with magnesium salts. The fluke was characterized by a large body size, a sucker ratio of 1:1, a straight cirrus organ, a short distance between the ventral sucker and ovary, well-developed vitellaria, a uterus with descending and ascending loops, and fully developed eggs with an average size of 32.5 x 17.5 microm. The patient had habitually eaten the raw flesh of snakehead mullet and gobies that had been caught near his village. The present case represents the first record of a human P. vespertilionis infection.     

The first record of a confirmed human case of Gnathostoma doloresi infection

The first case of Gnathostoma doloresi infection in a human was found in Miyazaki Prefecture, Japan. A whole length of the parasite was dissected out from biopsied skin and was identified as the third-stage larva of G. doloresi based on the morphological characteristics of the hooklets of the head bulb and also on the number of nuclei in the intestinal epithelial cells of the parasite.     

A case of fatal malabsorption syndrome caused by strongyloidiasis complicated with isosporiasis and human cytomegalovirus infection]

This 54-year-old Korean coal miner suffered from continuous watery diarrhea and weight loss after corticosteroid treatment (beta-methasone, 4 mg daily for 1 week) due to hip-bone fracture in January 1991. Except for the short therapy of steroid, no other histories were contributory. The malabsorption syndrome was aggravated while the case was treated under the impression of amebiasis or intestinal tuberculosis. AIDS antibody test by EIA was negative and quantitative analysis of serum immunoglobulins was in normal ranges. Nine months after the onset of symptoms, the case was diagnosed as malabsorption syndrome caused by complexed and aggravated infection by Strongyloides stercoralis, Isospora and cytomegalovirus in the small intestine, which were proved by stool examination and duodenal biopsy. His clinical course became worse even after high-dosed and prolonged albendazole treatment for strongyloidiasis with supportive fluid therapy. The patient was discharged in hopeless status in November, 1991 and died after one week at home.     

红斑肢痛症继发尖孢镰刀菌感染1例

报道红斑肢痛症继发尖孢镰刀菌感染1例。患者男,9岁。双小腿、双足间歇性红肿、热、痛2a,双下肢起脓疱、溃疡20d。溃疡部位脓液真菌培养为尖孢镰刀菌。患者经口服特比萘芬和局部治疗,溃疡愈合,真菌清除。